1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and to a device for dispensing data from a tachograph to an endless printing medium.
2. Prior Art
Tachographs are used in motor vehicles for recording data with regard to the vehicle activities and the driver activities. In addition, states of digital inputs of the tachograph can be recorded. The recorded data is stored in the tachograph over a certain period of time and can be dispensed to a printing medium, e.g. for control purposes.
It is legally specified what data is to be recorded. The tachograph usually keeps the recorded data stored for one year. Via a printer provided in the tachograph, control printouts of periods to be selected can be output on a printing medium. The printing medium is paper that comes from an endless roll. Anticipating the description of the figures, FIG. 2 is a typical printout as known in the prior art. Such a printout consists of a sequence of various data blocks which in each case have a predetermined significance. At the beginning of a printout, date and clock time of the printout are specified, followed by any information relating to the type of the printout, information relating to the authorization of the person who initiated the printout and information relating to the vehicle, to the tachograph manufacturer, to the calibration of the tachograph, to the last check and to the relevant driver. This is followed by lines of information relating to the actual vehicle and driver activities together with respective clock times of a day. The data output are essentially in text form. EEC regulation No. 3821/85 of Dec. 20, 1985 specifies contents and symbols for this.
It is especially during vehicle checks in road traffic that a problem occurs that very many printouts must be checked within a short time, probably even in darkness, and other peripheral devices that could provide for a comfortable transfer of data from the tachograph are not available.